Flat EGW firing pin stop

[olkev]

I have a SS Mil-Spec with 18.5# recoil spring and 20# mainspring and seem to be fighting some serious flip. I understand the flat firing pin stop will help considerably but am wondering about the spring combinations. This is a carry piece and I would really like for it to eat whatever I feed it. I put the current spring combination in it as a result of reading some articles about certain custom guns. What would happen if it moved the mainspring to 23# and left the recoil spring at 18.5? Would that throw things too far out of balance?

THANKS IN ADVANCE!

[John]

Remember, the pistol is a system. Every part works with every other part to give you a working pistol. Now, with that out of the way, let's go back to your question.

Why do some people suggest a heavier recoil spring? Or to put it in another way, do you really need a heavier than standard (16 lbs) recoil spring?

The answer is NO. A properly made 1911 will work with a 14 lbs spring, even a 12 lbs spring, without any problem, most of them come from the factory with springs closer to the 14 lbs mark than the 16 lbs. So why do some people suggest heavier springs?

Well, if you look carefully, you will see a pattern. First, whoever suggests a heavier spring usually installs a lighter main spring. Why? It's a simple way to slightly reduce your trigger pull. And unfortunately, a lighter trigger pull can be detected immediately (when buying a new pistol), while the damages caused by a heavier spring are progressive and won't show until many thousands of rounds down the road, if at all (most people do not shoot their pistols that much).

Another reason for using a heavier than standard recoil spring is that a 1911 will appear to work better to the untrained eye, with such a spring. Why? Because slight stem binds which can cause jams may just be covered by the heavier spring and never occur. The user believes that his pistol is working fine, while his pistol is still not perfect and suffering the poundage of the heavier spring. For the manufacturer, that means less returns for service, which is a good thing.

Will a heavier recoil spring damage your pistol? Most probably no, if we are talking about an 18 lbs one. And it may take several thousands of rounds to see the damage, if you ever reach that number of rounds. But the question is : Why? Why use a heavier spring? What do you gain?

While I do believe that John Moses Browning knew his pistol much better than anyone else, I am not quick to deny improvements. However, my experience with the 1911 has shown me that a heavier recoil spring is NOT an improvement. The pistol functions better for me, with lighter recoil springs than heavier ones. So I stick with what the doctor (JMB) prescribed: 16 lbs recoil spring, 23 lbs main spring and flat-bottom firing pin stop. Works like a charm. YMMV